M&A strategy when the obvious targets are gone
How companies can build a stronger acquisition radar by connecting portfolio logic, target intelligence and strategic fit before competition intensifies.
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M&A strategy
Shape M&A strategy from portfolio rationale and target priorities through diligence, value creation and integration.
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Articles
Due diligence for assets that are changing underneath the deal
Why commercial, operational and technology diligence must increasingly test future scenarios rather than validate historical performance.
Read articleFocus
A deal thesis should explain why ownership creates more value than any alternative
The logic must connect strategic need, target characteristics, economics and the specific advantage of acquiring rather than building or partnering.
Portfolio strategy requires deciding what the enterprise should stop owning
Exits and reconfiguration free capital and attention when assets no longer fit strategic priorities or ownership no longer creates advantage.
Strategic challenges
Which assumptions could cause the deal thesis to fail?
The challenge is identifying where downside comes from before valuation, momentum and confirmation bias narrow the decision.
What makes consolidation strategically better than organic growth?
The challenge is identifying where repeated acquisitions create genuine leverage rather than simply multiplying integration complexity.
POV
The most important diligence question is still whether the deal should exist
No amount of financial or operational analysis can rescue a transaction whose strategic logic was weak from the beginning.
A good target can still be the wrong acquisition for an unprepared buyer
Deal quality depends partly on the acquirer's ability to absorb complexity, not simply on the attractiveness of the asset.
Strategic impact
A clear deal thesis defines the economic and strategic logic before valuation dominates
Explicit assumptions make it easier to test fit, alternatives and the conditions required for the acquisition to create value.
A disciplined acquisition radar makes target identification more selective
Clear filters help leadership focus on businesses that fit strategic needs before time is spent on detailed evaluation.
What we observe
Buy-and-build programs often acquire faster than the platform can integrate
Deal cadence can outrun systems, management capacity and operating-model maturity, leaving value trapped across disconnected assets.
Technology diligence often inventories systems without testing strategic consequence
A long application list adds little unless technical weaknesses are linked to growth, integration, cost or operational risk.